Category Archives: Lead Story
The Black Keys with Arctic Monkeys (Bankers Life Fieldhouse)
The Black Keys w/ Arctic Monkeys
Live at Bankers Life Fieldhouse
3/16/12 Indianapolis, Indiana
Bankers Life Fieldhouse? That’s awful. I think I speak for the Indianapolis community when I say that name rolls off the tongue as smooth as cat litter. Like when Deer Creek became Verizon Wireless (and now recently Klipsch Music Center); the local community internal acceptance will take time. Though once suggesting that The Black Keys performing inside Conseco, err, I mean Bankers Life Fieldhouse (Ugh…this will be rough) was once just as unimaginable.
The Black Keys once seemed custom-fit for the grunge of packed smoke-hazed venues with their rock and roll rendition of sour mash blues. As the duo evolved their sound by adding bass and keyboards on recent albums, their fan base has evolved as well. For better or for worse, the Hipster is an endangered species at these shows.
By the time we took our seats, I witnessed the turnaround personally. Behind us, were thirteen year old boys much more concerned with pending scores of March Madness games in-progress. In front of us, the beers were flowing and spilled at a rapid rate. Uninterested (white) guys had their hats tilted to the side while the women are in their slutty dance club uniform and best described as “Woo Girls”. As great but approachable as The Black Keys’ last albums were, this unfortunately is expected collateral damage on a transition to Top 40 radio.
If there were any concerns on whether this music translates well to arena rock, those were silenced when The Arctic Monkeys clobbered us with “Brianstorm”. The epileptic seizure inducing strobes made sure to get our attention in case the wall of dissonance with sharp fuzz of guitars failed. “This House is a Circus” was a fit description as seats and the floor started to fill up. The English lads The Arctic Monkeys are a musically tight unit. Too brash and cocky for my taste but their talent almost justifies it. No member misses a note even with numerous songs featuring off beats to charge the rhythm. Lead singer Alex Turner croons as he would on record with extra reverb to spare. Although their overall set list was uneven with ballad songs like “Pretty Visitors” and “Hellcat Spangled Shalala” tangled with more crowd pleasers “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor” and “R U Mine?” If you have had prior experience with The Arctic Monkeys, this is business as usual but if you hadn’t, moderately intrigued would suffice.
Half the wait in-between sets was tearing down The Arctic Monkeys’ elaborate light/strobe show. The Black Keys stage presence was much more fundamental and modest as a reflection on their barebones musical approach. Guitarist/Singer Dan Auerbach pauses briefly for applause before wailing the immediate electric moan of “Howlin’ For You”. The ample audience serenaded The Fieldhouse and The Black Keys with the accompanying “Dadadada” bridge. Drummer Patrick Carney was furiously graceful with each song. His rhythmic timing was impeccable but he seemed he would pound through his snare after each break. Both sounded rich echoing off the Fieldhouse. Their normally intimate sound was pitched as well as expected for such a venue.
Previously, I questioned whether this brand of music was suited for an arena setting. The Black Keys must have been equally concerned as a majority of this set was material from the last three popular albums, especially Brothers and the new El Camino. As hearing the great songs of “Next Girl”, “Gold On The Ceiling” and “Tighten Up” was the easy and popular route; I still missed the early gritty bar blues of early albums like The Big Come Up and Thickfreakness. The middle of the set was dedicated to spoiled/erratic retro fans such as myself with songs “I’ll Be Your Man”, “Your Touch” and “Girl Is On My Mind” being played in succession. With such an inexperienced crowd, I was one of the few around me who truly appreciated them.
Despite the bus riding pop culture crowd, Auerbach and Carney are far from sell outs. The Black Keys’ are simply avoiding their music from becoming stagnate to a slow brew of what you hear today. Yes, they catered to the new fans by top loading new material and even ending their set with “Lonely Boy”; but in the end – the song(s) are still great. As long as that statement holds true, us moody regulars will still be sticking around these Akron natives.
Change doesn’t need to be so stressful if you stop fighting and just submit. Surrounded by my misplaced neighbors watching The Black Keys, I was reminded of this fact. All within the confines of Bankers Life Fieldhouse! Wow, the more I say it the worse it sounds. Fuck it! You’re still Conseco to me. One thing at a time…change comes in baby steps…
Fat, Sleek-Headed Men, Episode 3: Extended Play
Spring has sprung and with the longer days comes a vivacity for livelier conversation and culture. To help celebrate the blooming of a new season, Fat, Sleek-Headed Men searches for the bounce in the step and the power in the nightlife that once consumed the clubs around the world.
This is Episode 3. From the influential hi-nrg of Chicago disco chanteuse Evelyn Thomas to Scottish disco songstress Kelly Marie and her notable hit, “I Feel Like I’m In Love,” extended versions and 12 inch mixes are the name of the game on this mix of rare and delightful construction of disco fever.
Episode One: No Salvation Sweeter Than This
Episode Two: A Long Tradition of Cold Winters
Fat, Sleek-Headed Men
Episode 3: Extended Play
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:23:06 — 76.1MB)
1. Evelyn Thomas – Masquerade (Extended Version)
2. Hazell Dean – Searchin’ (I Gotta Find a Man) (12 in. Mix)
3. Earlene Bentley – The Boys Come to Town
4. Boytronic – X-Rated Phone Calls
5. Amanda Lear – Queen of Chinatown
6. Tapps – My Forbidden Lover (Original Canadian Version)
7. Divine – I’m So Beautiful
8. The Almighty Showgirls – Your Disco Needs You (Almighty Mix)
9. Trans X – Digital World
10. The Flirts – All You Ever Think About Is (Sex)
11. Paul Lekakis – Boom Boom (Let’s Go Back to My Room) (Original Version)
12. Lime – Babe, We’re Gonna Love Tonight (Extended Version)
13. Kelly Marie – It Feels Like I’m in Love (12 in. Mix)
Go Radio – Feeling Lucky
After a successful SXSW performance, and a great kickoff to a cross-country tour, Go Radio made a stop though Indianapolis, playing the Emerson. The band is still riding on the high of the successful Lucky Streets (Fearless) album as these songs have been shining bright on stage. Absolute Punk called it the best rock album of 2011, while their songs popped up on the Billboard 200.
In between the tour, their recent cover of Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” for the Fearless compilation Punk Goes Pop 4, they are busy working on new material for a follow-up album to land later this year.
I got the grit from Jason Lancaster about the tour and the upcoming album from this Tallahassee, Florida, band, a place they will always call home and keep near to their heart as you hear in their lyrics.
Link: Go Radio on Facebook
How are things going with the sophomore album? Any proposed titles for the upcoming release?
We have a few titles floating around, but nothing solid yet. It’s really hard to find a couple of words that describe the last year of our lives, but the record does a good job I believe. We’ve finished recording and are waiting on mixes, but I’m really excited. Wisner and all of us had a sit down and talked about it, and we all feel collectively that it’s the best thing any of us have ever done. It couldn’t have come out better to me.
How has it been balancing out working on the new material while still riding high on the Lucky Street album for this current tour?
We don’t ever really separate those parts of our lives. Everything that we go through is written about, so there are even songs about the stress of having to conceptualize the new record. It’s been a great ride so far, and we want to let people know that in the things we write.
What are you doing differently for the upcoming release than on Lucky Street? What is the direction you feel the music is taking this time around?
The record as a whole is a lot different. We’re all in different places in our lives and feeling different things so it was bound to do so, but I think it’s a good change. We we’re very particular about every aspect of this record. Not a single detail was overlooked for us. I think although different, our fans will love it just as much as we do.
I want to say how well the band does at connecting with their fanbase both on the stage and off, how do you keep that momentum and what kind of conscience mentality does the band have to have incorporate it into your ethics?
We are very aware of how important our fans are both on, and off the stage. We wouldn’t be anywhere without them and although we can’t be on a name basis with all of them, we’d like to try. we love meeting them and hearing the stories they tell us about how something we did helped. It’s a tremendous way to keep us grounded and humbled, which is important because they’ve all done so well at making us feel on top of the world.
You recently covered Adele’s “Rollin’ in the Deep” for the Punk Goes Pop compilation. Why choose that song and how easy was that to fit into the band’s curriculum of sound?
We actually chose that song BECAUSE it fit so easily into what we were doing. We were all fans of the song and the artist, and when Fearless brought it to us, there was never a second thought. I have to say, we didn’t see it picking up the speed it did. It took on a life of its own and really helped us get a lot of promotion we might not have gotten otherwise.
Where I wanted to go with that is to point out how diverse the band can be, reaching out to various elements and bringing them back into something that is uniquely Go Radio. Do you find that element of diversity in the band a strong point? What other strong points do you feel this band has?
I wish I could say it was a conscious thing, but it’s something we’ve been very lucky with. We’ve always had only one goal in mind when writing or putting together a song, and that’s to let the song become what’s natural to it. I think that may be why it sounds like us, is because it is us.
You just recently played SXSW? How was the response of the showcase and is that a gauge to what we will expect with this current tour?
SXSW was amazing for us. We did three different showcases and each one was amazing. Fearless was there and doing an incredible job making sure we had a blast, but I wouldn’t say it is going to mirror the Lucky Street tour. Everything is going to be so different, from our set time to the production side of it. it’s going to be an amazing tour, and now matter how awesome SXSW was, it could never compare to how we feel about doing a headliner.
What can we look forward to from the live show? Do you plan to play any of the new material?
We’re actually planning on doing a new song from the record, and I’m in love with it. As far as the live show goes, people can always expect the same live show from us. We always leave everything on the stage, and always make sure we have fun doing it. We did get a chance to work on some production for this one though, and it’s the first time we’ve had things like a lighting guy. It’s going to be a great tour.
To be a band from Tallahassee and have a strong reach nationally must feel great. What is the Florida city’s music scene like these days and how has that influenced the band, for better or worse?
Florida has always had a great scene, and it’s full of fans that will support Florida bands until the day they can’t. The music there has always been a big influence on all of us. Although not as many people go to local shows anymore, the music hasn’t suffered. An artist doesn’t have to have someone saying he’s great to love what he does, because he loves what he does. Florida is a testament to that. The scene surges and retreats, but never has a shortage of great bands to come back to.
Madi Diaz – Kiss and Tell
Madi Diaz and Rachael Yamagata
Thursday, March 22
Radio Radio
Even though you may not know this yet, Madi Diaz is one of Nashville’s top singer and songwriters of the 2010s. It’s not that she received an award for this or given special recognition. Listen to her latest endeavor Plastic Moon and you will feel her soothing words flow through you, blossoming from brilliance in her songwriting and how it all coincides with solid accompaniment. It all seem so easy, or that’s what her talent will lead you to believe. The way she intertwines pop music into the context of what she is doing is stunning.
Attending the Paul Green School of Rock in Philadelphia and soon after the Berklee School of Music in Boston, she eventually landed in Nashville to be surrounded by the rich music scene Tennessee’s state capitol had to offer.
At the Berklee School, she met guitarist Kyle Ryan, who she formed a close musical bond for their talent of song collaboration. The two perform together as Madi Diaz.
Diaz is riding high on her third full-length album (Skin and Bone in 2007 and Far From The Things That We Know in 2010).
I talked with Diaz about her recent death-metal inspired video for “Gimme a Kiss,” her take on the Jensen Sportag Remix of “Trust Fall,” and her upcoming stop at Radio Radio in Indianapolis.
Links:
Madi Diaz Official Site
ZapTown’s Look at Jensen Sportag’s Remix of Madi Diaz’ “Trust Fall”
You recently released the video for “Gimme A Kiss.” What inspired the direction of the video and why the Black Metal slant? What was it like working with Erich Weiss and a director who is used to working with more raucous music.
I LOVED working with Erich. We had such a limited time to actually film the video being that we did it in the middle of another tour (we finished it in under 8 hours somehow), so we were VERY lucky that we hit it off – haha. Erich had sent me the idea for a black metal inspired direction for “Kiss” without even knowing that I had a younger brother in a speed metal band (called Fisthammer….they’re amazing) so the back and forth was all spark from the get go. So fun.
The first half of the video is a testament to those great songs you want to turn up and sing out loud do. How does that pertain to what you did with the song and do you express your music as a whole with this kind of passion?
I love pop music that you can feel in your toes. It’s definitely always been my goal to write stuff that I feel like I can attach myself to while I’m singing or performing it.
What was it that made you want to become a singer/songwriter? How did time spent in Philadelphia and Boston help shape that?
I think it was something that was always just under the surface, something that was in certain songs that I heard that I felt really attached to or a certain artist. I can’t remember how, but I stumbled upon Ray LaMontagne, and I remember dragging a bunch of my friends to go to his show in Boston. I knew then and there that I wanted THAT; to feel that much and to be that open and honest in front of so many people. That’s the epitome of strength to me. Boston and Philly are both places where I feel like I gathered a lot of the pieces that I was then able to put together when I moved to Nashville.
What led you to Nashville and how does the city influence you?
I had been in the northeast for a long time and was beginning to feel like I was going to buckle if I stayed there. I was in a serious relationship that was beginning to define where I was headed but I wanted to steer my own ship. Nashville was perfect. so much music and community and I needed to whip myself out of the head space I was in and figure out what I wanted. Nashville helped me grow.
Listening to “Plastic Moon,” the music feels more evident to be like a reflection, what does the album mean to you as an artist and person?
Plastic Moon was my growing and searching record. It can be a little daunting when embarking on your writing and recording and digging to try to discover what you want to be what you want to sound like. I’m super proud of the songs and the way it turned out, and I’m even MORE excited to keep scratching away at the surface. I think the record helped me to realize that I know I can push myself further now.
What led to the remix with Jensen Sportag and how do you feel about the results? I would imagine it to be a good feeling to know that your music is adaptable like that.
I admired JS from afar in Nashville for quite a while. We have a million mutual friends and it was a long and beautiful courtship of first friendship and then collaborators. It’s the most amazing feeling in the world when you meet someone with a mutual love for the sounds you create. It’s elating.
Is there a difference to you in feeling of writing a sad song versus something radiant? How do the two compare to you and how do they co-exist within that context of the album?
I think intention is the difference. I love songs that mask themselves and make you really listen to realize what they’re about. You can write an up tempo song that makes you dance and move but up close makes you mourn. or you can write a quiet song that sounds dark and emotional but might be about deep-sea diving or looking for sea shells. I try not to think about how they can co-exist but rather that they must co-exist because you can’t really have the light without the dark.
You are teaming up with Rachael Yamagata for this current tour which seems like a great compliment to each other. How do you feel the tour is going so far and how has the team up been?
I love Rachael. she’s been so good for me to be around because she just knows how to handle everything with such charming ease and calm. She works SO hard but at the end knows how to let go which is something that I’m working on! Hopefully this won’t be our last jaunt together!
In the scope of things, how much freedom do you give yourself on stage versus the recordings? Are there limitations?
I used to be by the book from our recordings but very recently realized how freeing and incredible it is to let myself wonder and interpret on a show to show basis. It really keeps you in the world of the now while you’re performing.
After the tour, what do you have planned?
I don’t have much planned through the summer but to hopefully write SO MUCH and kind of dream about where I want to go next. Kyle and I are releasing a new EP in early June that I think will give people an idea of where we’re headed…which…I mean…I’m not sure precisely where we’re headed…but we’re headed there right now!
Steve Aoki with Datsik, Mustard Pimp and Matt Porter at the Egyptian Room
Steve Aoki | Datsik | Mustard Pimp | Matt Porter
The Egyptian Room at Old National Centre
February 21, 2012
Links:
I had seen Steve Aoki and Datsik in the summer of 2011 at IDentity Festival. Datsik was a complete surprise to me. We had just saw Holy Ghost! perform a fantastic set and ran into Afrobeta on the sidelines. Trying to talk to Smurfio became almost impossible when Datsik took the stage. The only thing we could do was part ways and go gaze on some of the most mind-blowing Dupstep I have heard. He blew everyone’s hair back with such intensity it felt like you were being electrocuted. And when you think it couldn’t get any more intense, the Canadian would say “Here comes the brown note,” and turn the bass up louder. It was a memorable performance that not just set a precedent for the rest of the day, but for Dubstep period.
Later that evening Steve Aoki took the same stage with his larger than life letters (A-O-K-I) sprawled across the stage and videos from his various songs taking form behind him as he pulled out his number with Lil’ John or the team up with Rivers Cuomo from Weezer. An outline of a cow illustration burned into our minds as he performed the testament to who he has become, the son of the founder of Benihana and anti-fur activist. “No Beef” has given those who respect animals a theme song for the 21st Century, although in reality, the song is about the human condition.
It was a great way to spend a summer evening outdoors watching Aoki spray champagne on a hungry crowd of electro heads or running from one side to the other like a cheerleader, pumping up the techo savages.
Months have gone by since IDentity and the opportunity to see both Datsik and Aoki share a stage again was irresisteble. How would the Egyptian Room handle the bass of Datsik? What does Aoki have up his sleeve? The answer was soon to come.
Again, we made our descendage down Mass Ave. to the venue, passing by bustling restaurants and people noodling away on their laptops and downing cups of Starbucks. These people didn’t get it. They would live their lives not knowing the insatiable knowledge that we did, nor were they about to experience what we were going to, for good and bad.
Even though we didn’t know it at the time, it was nice to know that normality existed as things were about to get “weird,” or so a group of dudes proclaimed to me just as Mustard Pimp took the stage. “Let’s get weird,” they screamed. My reply? “Hell yes! Let’s get weird.” Little did they know I was just satisfying their needs for bro bonding while setting my sights on Matt Porter.
Porter put on a nice set that turned into a great warm up, like stretching before that marathon run. His style was smooth and House-laden beats pumped through the speakers like getting your blood pressure taken and the adrenaline flowing.
I The adrenaline came from Mustard Pimp. I wasn’t interested in seeing Mustard Pimp to begin with and did not find the YouTube find all that thrilling, but after they blasted into their set, two on the decks and one on a drum kit, it was like everything from ‘90s electro resurrected, re-animating the monster to reek havoc on the village.
The songs were intense and powerful. These guys were pumped and the music reflected it. It was nice that the crowd also reflected this. Hardly a full floor, the people who were there, were there for the music, and that in itself made this show impressive. It’s a shame the drunk who passed out five minutes into the show, missed an awe-inspiring set.
Even though the room was not packed, Datsik came out to a roaring crowd. Adorned in his usual uniform of a ball cap and t shirt, we expected him to explode. Instead he pulled off the unexpected.
Datsik warped this Progressive House set while peppering in Dubstep and taking the music and his talent to another dimension. It was not what we expected, but something we were thankful for by the end of it all. We had earplugs, but it was not necessary. It gave me a new perspective on the DJ and showed off his talents.
Like a nervous tick, he was in constant motion, bumping up and down to the beat, arms in the air, hands all over his mixing board. He threw together amazing remixes along with his staples like “Guess I Got My Swagga Back” and “Firepower.” By the end he was really appreciative.
When Steve Aoki’s stage set was revealed, there was not much different than from his set up at IDentity. After Aoki came out, took a photo of the audience and tweeted it or did whatever with his phone, he jumped down off his gear and went to work.
Aoki intro’d the set with “Steve Jobs.” It was a gentle build up, but after a few songs into his set, he began to pull out the big guns. He went into “Tornado” and then “Turbulence.” As Lil’ Jon yells “higher,” behind him on the video screen, the champagne gets shook a little harder until the crowd gets sprayed once again like a christening.
Not much had changed on stage. It felt like it took him a while to really get into it and show the energy he had last summer.
In early January, he released his anticipated full length, Wonderland that features a mixture of team ups (the Lil Jons, the Afrojacks, the Rivers Cuomo). But then there are new surprises on the album that shine out like his work with Wynter Gordon on “Ladi Dadi,” Lovefoxxx on “Heartbreaker” and Kid Cudi on “Cudi the Kid.” These songs show the richness Aoki has at assembling amazing House remixes within Top 40 thematics, creating his own interpretation of modern pop music. Don’t get me wrong, the songs that have become staples for Aoki’s set are still as vibrant as hearing them the first time, but you can only spray people in the face with your music so many times before they want a new kind of kick. How many times does the Flaming Lips have to shower their crowd with confetti or LMFAO wiggle their penises to prove that their are sexy. Aoki has carved out a niche that although has become habitual is now almost expected.
He ramped things up with his aggro-protest song “The Kids Will Have Their Say,” and “New Noise,” with Refused on the background video.
The signature raft came out as a crowd member sailed across people’s heads and Aoki ran about the stage rallying the troops to a heightened state of dance frenzy, People were indeed getting “weird.”
Even though I would consider Aoki’s set a moderate one, it was still worth the trip back to experience every one on the bill. To the dude who came in drunk, passed out, puked, passed out again and then got kicked out all in the first 15 minutes of the show—you missed it!
